When it comes to Swedish-styled retro death metal, originality is about as frequent as water in the desert. A relatively simple formula to retread: pack in that buzzsaw guitar tone, add some heavy yet Read more […]
In all fairness to Autopsy’s undeniable legacy and influence, DR didn’t have to dig into the netherworlds of its cranium to dissect Tourniquets, Hacksaws, and Graves. Killer title, though. In what Read more […]
So, New York’s Imperial Triumphant took the ten songs from their last two albums and combined them into one re-release called Shrine to the Trident Throne. It’s a two for one deal! No need to be said, Read more […]
There’s your winner for longest album title of the year: The Application of Loneliness, Ignorance, Misery, Love, and Despair – An Introspective of the Human Condition. Sunny stuff, you know? Such a Read more […]
The release of Aposento has been a long time coming. The band formed in 1990 and this is their first full-length album. That’s 24 years in the making! Sure, there were a few demos/EPs along the Read more […]
After some praise was shed on the independent release of Ecocide’s debut, Eye of Wicked Sight, Disharmonic Records has now re-released the album for those of us who missed it the first time to enjoy. Read more […]
Leave it to Vader to come up with a no-frills, to-the-bone death metal album with personality…and separation. Separation, of course, from the retro minions, of which surprisingly, Vader isn’t poached Read more […]
With the heap of bands trying to party like it’s 1992 Stockholm, how does a band revel in the glories of the past, while forging a path that’s all your own? Well, in the case of Gluttony (and many Read more […]
Alas, the New Zealand torch-bearer for war metal. The name gives it away – “Diocletian” was a Roman emperor who came up through the empirical ranks after being born into poverty, collecting all sorts Read more […]
We’re all familiar with the term “mixed-bag” when it comes to quality, but that term’s normally used within a full-album context, saying some songs are better than others and the listening experience Read more […]
Misery Index has been synonymous with consistency since their birth in 2001. It has been a while since they have released a new album though, four years to be exact. Watching the band tone down the Read more […]
Initial observations had this Transylvania County, North Carolina (such a place does exist – DR has been there) duo pegged as yet another hearse-chaser in the occult/70’s rock field. Sure looks that Read more […]
Martyr Defiled’s latest full-length deserves credit for not trying to be anything other than what it is. It doesn’t set out to reinvent the wheel but instead aims to deliver a smattering of violent Read more […]
The buzz around Pillory will probably stem from the recording/producing job of founding drummer Darren Cesca (Arsis et al). The long time coming follow up to 2005’s No Lifeguard at the Gene Pool (an Read more […]
Taking in this album a minimum of five times a week prior to typing up this review, if I could revise my top five list of 2014 to date, Australia’s Voyager would be right in the mix a la our esteemed Read more […]
You all know the adage about what happens when you assume, correct? Well, when you see a band on Victory Records and whispers of deathcore are buzzing in your ear, it’s easy to pigeonhole and assume Read more […]
French oldies but goodies, Loudblast have been knocking boots with death metal since 1985, which means they were in their infantile stages when the sound was in an equal state. They’re certifiably mondo Read more […]
After heralding a few demos and an EP, Heidra secured their record deal with Mighty Music after winning the Mighty Fight Night earlier this year and Awaiting Dawn is the result of that victory. What Read more […]
Really, the next in line when it comes to Irish metal bands of significance, Darkest Era appeared to be on the high-profile up-and-up via 2011’s The Last Caress of Light, which was released by Metal Read more […]
These Portuguese lads should ponder a name change…”We Are the Damned” may not resonate well with their intended audience of grindcore and death metal – those folks will poke holes in anything. Read more […]
The ‘Welsh Death Metal Bastards’ have returned once more with their seventh album. Featuring songs such as “Tactile Necrophile,” “Cunt Full of Maggots,” and “Cut Up & Fed to the Dog” Read more […]
Admittedly, it’s been a while since Arch Enemy was a band to get excited about. Coming out strong during the Liiva years and then carrying into Wages of Sin and Doomsday Machine, with the past few Read more […]
Though it might mainly appeal to the folk-metal audience, this is one of those rare occasions when it’s downright legit to say this is an album not to miss out on. One and All, Together, for Home is Read more […]
Snotty German thrash would be Dust Bolt, which is almost as odd of a proposition of flunky Finnish thrash, currently provided by Lost Society. Nevertheless, it’s this dichotomy in which these bands hope Read more […]
Why is it that black metal has become synonymous with one-man bands? Is it because they are just too kvlt to work with anyone else? Regardless, The Eerie Sound of the Slow Awakening is the fourth album Read more […]
The liberal use of the word “classic” needs to stop. Contrary to certain belief subsets, not every album originating from the 80’s and 90’s deserves such a tag. It’s almost a disservice to the Read more […]
The period of 1993 to roughly 1996 (and probably a tad further) couldn’t have been worse to the likes of Dio, Maiden, Priest, and anyone else associated with the proto-80’s metal guard. The regular, churning Read more […]
With a pedigree like the one Serpentine Path carries, it’s easy to set unruly expectations. Consisting of former members of Unearthly Trance, Electric Wizard, and even genre monolith Winter, the band Read more […]
Funereal Presence – how that name sends chills up the spine! A four song arrangement seems to be this band’s preferred method in compiling an album because The Archer Takes Aim is their second release Read more […]
French metal is more than Gojira, my friends. There is a long history of traditional, power, thrash, and death acts, many of which made an album or two and fell by the wayside due to product glut, language Read more […]
